Snow plow with tiltable blade structure



July 22, 1969 J. E. LEPOSKY 3,456,369

SNOW PLOW WLTH 'IIIIIAISLII BLADE STRUCTURE Filed July 20, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet l Ground John E Leposky BY 5% w/w Obstacle l8 ATTORNEYS July 22, 1969 J LEPQSKY 3,456,369

SNOW PLOW WITH TILTABLE BLADE STRUCTURE Filed July 20. 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 BY W J ATTORNEYS July 22, 1969 J. E. LEPOSKY 3,456,369

SNOW PLOW WITH TILT/\ULIE BLADE STRUCTURE Filed July 20, 1966 3 Sheets-Sheet 15 INVENTOR John E Leposky BY 5% W ATTORNEYS United States Patent 3,456,369 SNOW PLOW WITH TILTABLE BLADE STRUCTURE John E. Leposky, 2766 E. Larch Road, Harrison, Mich. 48625 I Filed July 20, 1966, Ser. No. 566,506

Int. Cl. E01h /06; E02f 3/85 US. CI. 37-42 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE This invention relates to a plow, and more particularly to a snow plow.

There has been considerable development in the field of snow plow attachments to various types of vehicles. It has been recognized that there is a need to provide the plow with means to absorb the shock or to tilt the plow blade out of the normal path of operation when an obstacle is struck.

Various approaches have been attempted to facilitate the tilting operation, and more particularly in returning the moldboard to its original operating position. However, many of these require spring mechanisms to bring the moldboard back to its original position.

A common failing of devices of this type occurs in the fact that the spring biasing means provides an inherent weakness in the device, thus accounting for many breakdowns and uncertainty in the operation of the spring members.

One object is to provide a snow plow having a plow blade or moldboard which will tilt when an obstacle is struck.

Another object is to provide a pivoting moldboard which is free from the need of any biasing members and utilizes gravity and a unique linkage arrangement to return the moldboard to its normal operating position.

A further object is to provide a tiltable blade snow plow with means to vary the normal position of the moldboard relative to a horizontal axis perpendicular to the line of movement of the plow.

Another object is to provide means located on the moldboard or means located on a bell crank on the support assembly for varying the above mentioned angle of the moldboard. This in turn will control the amount of snow or the like in the blade.

Another object of the invention is to provide means to vary the angular location of the moldboard relative to a vertical axis.

Still another object of the invention is to provide means for coupling the snow plow to the frame of the pushing vehicle. It is desired to provide means on the hitch to easily facilitate opening and closing of the hook portion on the hitch. Particularly, it is an object to be able to open the hook on the hitch by merely stepping on the operating member, without the need of bending down to unhitch the support.

Another object of the invention is to provide a bell crank lifting mechanism for tilting the moldboard about the point at which the blade meets the obstruction on the ground.

SUMMARY In general the invention includes a moldboard having a pusher means pivotally connecting it to the frame of a 3,456,369 Patented July 22, 1969 pushing vehicle. A bell crank arrangement is pivotally connected to the pusher frame. Another member pivotally connects the bell crank to a location on the moldboard remote from the location of the pusher member, the entire device closely approximating a parallelogram. Means is also provided to raise and lower the entire device when it is desired to transport the snow plow from one plowing location to another.

These and other objects and advantages of the invention -will become more fully apparent from the accompanying description made in connection with the accorrrpanying drawings wherein like reference characters refer to similar parts throughout the several views and in which:

FIGURES 1-4 are a series of side elevation views in schematic form showing the overall operation of the device;

FIGURE 5 is a perspective view of a portion of the invention showing certain elements in greater detail;

FIGURE 6 is a detail of the hitch; and

FIGURE 7 is a perspective view of the invention showing the rear of the plow blade.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION AND SCHEMATIC OF OPERATION Referring now particularly to FIGURES l-4, a snow plow attachment 10 is seen connected to a vehicle 12. The vehicle 12 has a bumper 14 having a bracket shaped support member 16 attached thereto. Also attached to the vehicle frame is a depending brace portion 18. A pusher frame member 20 is pivotally connected to member 18 at 22. Connected to the other end of the pusher member 20 is a plow blade or moldboard 24 which pivotally connects to the pusher at 26. Rigidly secured to the pusher member is an upstanding bracket 28. A bell crank 30 is pivotally connected to the bracket at 32.

The bell crank 30 has a plurality of apertures 34 located at the upper extremity thereof and another aperture 36 located at the forward extremity. Pivotally connected to the bell crank 30 at one of the upper apertures is a rigid connection means in the form of a bar 38. The bar is pivotally connected at 40 to the bell crank through one of a plurality of apertures 42. The other end of the bar 38 is pivotally connected at 44 to a remote portion of the moldboard.

Positioned on the brackets 16 is a hydraulic cylinder 46 which pivotally connects to an arm 48 at point 50. Arm 48 is in turn pivoted at 51 on an upstanding rod 52 which is mounted on the frame 16. The hydraulic piston 46 is connected either to the frame or upstanding member 52 at point 54.

At the end of arm 48 is connected a chain or the like 56 which in turn is connected to aperture 36 on the forward extremity of the bell crank member. This forward extremity is at a point forward of the upstanding bracket 22 which limits rearward pivotal movement of the bell crank.

BRIEF OPERATION OF THE SCHEMATIC DIAGRAMS OF FIGURES l-4 As seen in FIGURE 1 the plow moves along the ground with the moldboard 24 in substantially an upright position. As the plow hits an obstacle, the vehicle will still tend to move forward. Therefore, the pusher member 20 will tend to force the moldboard 24 to pivot around the point so marked in FIGURE 1. As seen in FIGURE 2 the moldboard will be pivoting at both 26 and 44 on members 20 and 34. The bell crank 30 which more or less forms a parallelogram with members 20, 24, and 38 will pivot downward as seen also in FIGURE 2. It should be pointed out that the pusher member 20 will also be pivoting at point 22 on the frame.

Since the vehicle 12 is continuously itself approaching the obstacle, the pressure on the moldboard 24 causes the moldboard to tilt. As it tilts to its limit and as the vehicle moves forward, the pusher arm 20 will rotate around the pivot point 22 and the moldboard will rise up above the obstacle as bell crank 30 rotates to its lowermost position as seen in FIGURE 3. Gravity will always tend to bring the device as close to its position seen in FIGURE 1. Therefore, as it rides up over the obstacle as seen in FIGURES 3 and 4, the moldboard will tilt back toward its normal position as seen in FIGURE 4, with the bell crank pivoting more nearly to its normal longitudinal position.

It will be seen that when it is desired to move the plow from one plowing location to another, the hydraulic cylinder 46 will be actuated and will raise the entire device by means of chain 56 pulling on the forward end of hell crank 30 at point 36. As will be described in more detail below, the bell crank 30 and hence the bar 38 is limited in its clockwise rotation around pivot 32 by the construction of the bracket 28.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF BELL CRANK AND FRAME APPARATUS As best seen in FIGURES and 7 the supporting frame on the truck includes the depending portions 18 and a trapeze-type bar 102 which corresponds to the pivot point 22 discussed in regard to FIGURES 14. A pair of bars 104 are connected for example to the axle of the vehicle and project outwardly to the pivot point 22 to add further rigidity. The pusher bar 20 which is pivotally connected to the vehicle includes a pair of lower frame sections 106 and a connecting section 108. The connecting section 108 has a plurality of apertures 110 arranged in an arc to provide equi-distant connection points from the blade. A pair of upper frame members 112 meet at a point adjacent one of the apertures 110. The upper frame member 112 includes an aperture 114 into which a drop pin 116 is positioned.

The upper frame 106 has a connecting portion 120 forming an A-shaped member with the portions 106, the connecting member 120 being parallel to the connecting section 108. The bracket 28 is in the form of a pair of upstanding members 122, while the pivot 32 includes a bolt or the like going through apertures in both of the parallel bracket members 122 and through a corresponding aperture in the bell crank 30 which is positioned between bracket members 122.

The forward end of the lower frame 106 is pivotally connected to pivot rod 26 by means of a bushing or the like 124. Connected to the bushing is a rearwardly extending member 126 having an aperture therein. A plate 128 is attached to the lower frame member 106 and includes an aperture and corresponding pin 130 therein which will provide a vertical axis for the pivotal movement of the lower frame relative to the plow blade when the upper frame is selectively positioned in apertures 110.

The bell crank arrangement discussed in regard to FIGURES 1-4 is seen in greater detail in FIGURE 5. Also, the rigid connection means or bar 38 referred to above is seen as a pair of parallel members 130 sandwiched around the bell crank 30 for greater rigidity.

HITCH MECHANISM The frame 106 has a pair of forked rearwardly extending portions 140. These portions extend over the rod 102 between the support member 104 and depending bracket member 18. Pivotally connected by means of a rod 142 is a hook-shaped member 144. On the outer portion of the rod 142 is a triangular-shaped foot operated mechanism 146. Attached to the upper portion of operating member 146 is a bracket 148 having an aperture 150 therein. A corresponding bracket 152 with aperture 154 therein is located on the upper portion of the lower frame member 106. A spring 156 attached to a pin 158 is seen in the apertures to prevent the foot operated member from rotating when the hitch is in the position seen in FIGURE 5. In operation, the forked member is slid into the space between members 18 and 104 and onto the rod 102 on both sides of the vehicle. The hook 144 is lowered onto the rod 102, the apertures and 154 are lined up, and pin 158 is inserted. It will be noted that through the connecting rod 142, both sides may be opened and closed with one movement of the triangular foot operated means 146 because the rod 142 is connected to the triangular foot operated member on the other side of the vehicle.

CONSTRUCTION OF THE PLOW BLADE The plow blade consists of a plurality of vertically spaced parallel risers 160. The pivot rod 26 is supported by the risers and additional bracket means 162. An intermediate riser 164 includes a plurality of spaced apertures 166 into which the pivot pin 44 is selectively inserted. This construction provides a blade which is both rigid and adaptable to the operating mechanism.

OVERALL OPERATION The overall operation of the invention will be seen with reference to the various figures in the drawing including the schematics of FIGURES 1-4 and the detailed views of the remaining figures. It should be pointed out that the detail of FIGURE 6 most nearly corresponds to the schematic seen in FIGURE 3 wherein the bell crank 30 is pivoted almost to its extreme lowermost position. The scraper blade will therefore also be generally pivoted forward. It will also be noted that the flat bottom surface of the bell crank 30 will abut against the frame 120 thus limiting the clockwise rotation of the bell crank. This will facilitate in raising the entire device by means of chain 56 attached to the hydraulic element 46. It will also limit the rearward movement of the rigid connecting bar 38 and thus the clockwise rotation of the scraper blade.

In operation, the plow assembly is connected to the vehicle as described above in the description of the hitch. The angle at which the blade is to be positioned relative to the front of the vehicle (whether it is to push the snow or dirt forward or to the side) is determined by the location of upper frame 112 in relation to the cross member 108. The pin 116 is placed in opening 114 in frame 112 and a corresponding selected opening 110 in cross member 108.

Chain 56 is attached to the hydraulic operating means 46, 48 and 52. Again, the chain is used primarily to lift the plow for transportation from one location to another.

The angle of the blade 24 and its position relative to the horizontal axis will be determined by which of the apertures 166 the pivot pin 44 is positioned within. Also the position of the blade may be determined by selectively positioning the pivot 40 in one of the apertures 34 in the bell crank 30. It is obvious that by adjusting the location of the lower frame member relative to the blade or adjusting the bell crank relative to the lower frame will provide similar angle changes by changing the shape of the parallelogram.

From this point on, the operation will be the same as set out above wherein the operation of the schematic diagrams of FIGURES 1-4 were described.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A plow for vehicles comprising (a) a plow blade,

(b) first horizontal pivot means connected to the lower portion of said plow blade,

(c) second horizontal pivot means connected to the upper portion of said plow blade,

(d) frame means pivotally connected to said first horizontal pivot means,

(e) rigid connection means having one end pivotally connected to said second horizontal pivot means, (f) a bell crank pivotally connected to said frame means,

(g) said rigid connection means having its other end pivotally connected to said bell crank,

(h) means on said frame means limiting the pivotal movement of said bell crank on its axis thereby to limit rearward travel of said rigid connection, and

(i) means connected to a point relatively stationary to said aforementioned means and connected to said bell crank at a point opposite the bell crank pivot and said limiting means for providing a spring-free, gravity operated device for returning said plow blade to its normal operating position.

2. A plow for vehicles as in claim 1 and wherein (a) said first horizontal pivot means includes three spaced pivots and (b) said name means includes three spaced horizontal pivot connections secured to said three spaced pivots.

3. A plow for vehicles as in claim 1 and wherein (a) the middle of said spaced horizontal pivot connections includes a vertical pivot,

(b) said frame means includes an upper and lower frame section,

(c) one of said sections being pivotally secured to said vertical pivot, and

(d) the other of said sections being secured to the outer of said spaced horizontal pivot connections.

4. A plow for vehicles as in claim 3 and wherein (a) said upper and lower frame sections are pivotally connected to each other.

5. A plow for vehicles as in claim 4 and wherein (a) said upper frame section is secured to the outer of said spaced horizontal pivot connection and (b) said lower frame section is pivotally secured to said vertical pivot.

6. A plow for vehicles as in claim 5 and wherein (a) said bell crank is secured to said lower frame section.

7. A plow for vehicles as in claim 3 and wherein (a) said frame means includes vehicle connection means.

8. A plow for vehicles as in claim 7 and wherein (a) said vehicle connection means includes a pivoted foot operated disconnect lever.

9. A plow for vehicles as in claim 8 and wherein (a) said pivoted foot operated disconnect lever includes removable lock means for preventing pivotmg.

10. A plow for vehicles as in claim 1 and wherein (a) said plow blade includes means for vertically adjusting said rigid connection.

11. A plow for vehicles as in claim 10 and wherein (a) said frame means includes means for adjusting the curb angle of said plow blade.

12. A plow for vehicles as in claim 1 and wherein (a) said bell crank includes means for adjustably connecting said rigid connection means thereto.

13. A plow for vehicles as in claim 1 and wherein (a) said bell crank and said rigid connection means each include means for cooperative mutual adjustable connection.

14. A plow for vehicles as defined in claim 1 including (a) means for adjusting the pivotal movement of said plow blade relative to said vehicle.

15. A plow for vehicles as defined in claim 1 wherein a hydraulic lifter is connected to said spring-free, gravity operated returning device for lifting and said plow blade.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,383,409 7/1921 Liddell 37--42 2,166,424 7/ 1939 Coates 3742 2,264,368 12/ 1941 Gettelman 3742 2,420,591 5/1947 Frame et al. 3742 2,577,145 12/1951 Wearing et al. 37-42 2,704,495 3/ 1955 Schwindt et al. 3798 2,792,650 5/ 1957 Kenyon 3742 2,867,921 1/1959 Brown 3742 3,150,884 9/1964 Drott 3742 3,165,842 l/ 1965 Holopainen 3742 3,307,275 3/ 1967 Simi 3742 FOREIGN PATENTS 546,886 10/1957 Canada.

ROBERT E. PULFREY, Primary Examiner EUGENE H. EICKHOLT, Assistant Examiner US. Cl. X.R. 

